The Government’s global warming advisor has predicted sharp rises in energy prices as he called for cuts of at least 34 per cent in Britain’s carbon emissions by 2020.

The Committee on Climate Change, chaired by Lord Turner, also said emissions should be cut by even more if an international deal on reducing greenhouse gases is agreed.

But as the UK shifts to cleaner fuel sources, such as wind, and introduces expensive technologies to cut pollution from burning fuels, household bills could rise by a quarter, he warned.

If the current UN negotiations lead to a new deal on climate change in Copenhagen next December, the UK’s greenhouse gases should be cut by 42 per cent on 1990 levels by the end of the next decade.

The significant reductions can be achieved at a cost of less than one per cent of GDP in 2020, and using existing green technologies, a report from the committee said.

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A d v e r t i s e m e n t

But stronger Government policies will be needed to move the UK to a low-carbon economy.

The cuts can be achieved by cleaner power generation from sources such as wind, which could make up 30 per cent of the UK’s electricity by 2020, and measures including energy-efficiency improvements in homes and offices and developing more efficient, electric and hydrogen-powered cars.